Jackson v. Superior Court of Contra Costa Cnty.

*899 *517 Petitioner Jonathan Jackson seeks extraordinary writ relief from the superior court's order denying his motion to dismiss an indictment issued by a grand jury charging him with special circumstances murder, kidnapping, and rape. Petitioner moved to dismiss the indictment pursuant to Penal Code section 995 1 and on nonstatutory grounds. The motion was brought on the grounds, among others, that the deputy district attorney's excusal of a juror for cause, in the presence of the remaining grand jurors, substantially impaired the independence and impartiality of the grand jury, deprived petitioner of a substantial right, and thereby violated his right to due process. The California Supreme Court is currently considering whether a prosecutor's improper dismissal of a grand juror denied a defendant a "substantial right" in Avitia v. Superior Court (Apr. 18, 2017, C082859), 2017 WL 1382115 [nonpub. opn.], review granted June 21, 2017, S242030. That court has also granted review of a subsequent decision by the Third District Court of Appeal that presents issues similar to those presented here. ( Williams v. Superior Court (2017) 15 Cal.App.5th 1049 , 224 Cal.Rptr.3d 68 , review…